


Winter is Here

by GriffinRose



Series: The Misadventures of the Big Four at Hogwarts [1]
Category: Brave - Fandom, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of The Brave Tangled Dragons - Fandom, Rise of the Guardians (2012), tangled - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Fall through ice, Gen, Ice Skating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-23 06:37:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20003929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GriffinRose/pseuds/GriffinRose
Summary: Ice skating goes horribly wrong when the ice isn't as thick as they think it is, and Jack suffers some...interesting consequences.ORThe tale of why Jack's hair turned white.





	Winter is Here

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this forever ago so HERE, HAVE IT. 
> 
> Jack= Gryffindor  
> Hiccup= Ravenclaw  
> Merida= Slytherin  
> Rapunzel= Hufflepuff
> 
> They're in fifth year in this one.

**Jack’s Hair**

“Hey ‘scuse me coming through!” Jack warned before slipping past people on the stairs. There were cries of dismay at being pushed aside and books tumbled to the ground, but Jack had warned them.

“Jack!” Emma’s voice carried through the crowd. Jack smiled and jumped up on the banister to try and find her. She was standing on a ledge, trying to see over the crowd. Her eyes spotted him and she smiled and waved. Jack motioned for her to stay where she was and he made his way towards her.

“Hey squirt!” Jack greeted. Emma smiled. Her Hufflepuff uniform was perfectly arranged on her, her socks pulled up to her knees and her shirt properly tucked in. Jack’s own Gryffindor uniform was lazy at best, his tie loosely hanging around his neck and his shirt untucked. “You ready?” Jack asked.

Emma smiled. She’d been worried when she first came to Hogwarts that Jack would brush her off, thinking he was too good in his fifth year to be hanging out with a little first year. But that hadn’t happened at all. He checked up on her every day, introduced her to his much cooler fifth year friends. Rapunzel always helped her with her homework too, since they were in the same house.

Now that it was snowing and there was a good ten inches on the ground, they were going to take advantage of it. It was Friday, so there were no classes to worry about tonight and no homework that needed to be done for tomorrow, so Jack had promised they were going to spend the late afternoon in the snow. Hiccup, Merida, and Rapunzel would be joining them as soon as they could, but at the moment they had other obligations. Hiccup and Rapunzel had class, and Merida had Quidditch practice.

So that left the two Overland siblings and a heck of a lot of snow. Jack took Emma’s hand and led her through the crowd to the big doors, easily opening them and then closing them behind her. Emma let go of Jack’s hand and raced ahead, a smile breaking her face at all the snow. It was just like home.

She kicked up the white fluff and turned to Jack, and she wasn’t that surprised to find a snowball in her face. “Jack!” she complained.

He just laughed. “C’mon, let’s head down to the lake! I want to see if we can skate on it yet!”

It had been a tradition he’d created back in first year to spend most of winter at Hogwarts skating. None of the others had really understood his love of racing across the ice, but they had to admit it was entertaining watching each other on the slippery surface. Since the season had really only just started though, Jack wasn’t sure how solid the ice would be. It had looked frozen this morning from Gryffindor tower, but that didn’t mean much.

Jack raced Emma down the snowy slope, slowing down a little to give her a chance against his long legs. She was giggling hysterically, just as excited. Their winter home up north always had a frozen lake, and she was looking forward to skating again.

Jack stopped at the edge of the lake, tapping the ice with his foot. It made a solid thump and he grinned, stepping out. The ice held. He motioned for Emma to wait a moment while he checked how far the ice held, knowing that the shallows might be more solid than the deeper places. He went out fifteen feet before he noticed the ice start thinning, the coloration lighter than the rest of the ice.

He turned back to his sister and grinned. “We should be fine as long as we stay close to the bank,” he told her. She cheered and joined him on the ice. They played on the ice for a bit, Jack racing to the bank to grab a handful of snow on more than once occasion. An hour passed quickly, and voices of Merida, Hiccup, and Rapunzel could be heard.

“They’re coming!” Emma said, turning a little too quickly on the ice. She lost her balance, and in trying to get it back she ended up backing up towards the middle of the lake. Her feet finally went out from under her and she landed on her butt, a crack making both her and Jack freeze.

“Emma?” Jack asked, taking a few cautious steps towards her.

“I’m alright,” she said, getting to her feet carefully. Cracks spiderwebbed from her feet, spreading as she moved around. She froze again, her arms spread wide for balance. She bit her lip and took a step forward, cracks spreading like wildfire from the new weight. “Jack!”

“Hey, you’re going to be fine,” Jack said, making his way towards her.

“Jack I’m scared,” Emma said, looking up to her older brother with fear in her eyes. Jack swallowed down his own fear.

“Yeah, I know, but you don’t have to be. You’re going to be fine,” Jack vowed. “Just step towards me, easy now,” Jack coached, his long arms reaching out for her. Emma took a careful step, but the ice couldn’t take anymore. Her body gave a little jolt and would have fallen through the ice if Jack hadn’t sprung forward and grabbed her arm, throwing her light weight across the ice. She slid right into the snow bank.

Jack, however, landed on the already precarious ice. His heavier weight went right through the thin frost, plunging him into the icy waters.

He flailed in the water, his chest tightening painfully from the cold water pressing against him. He wasn’t a good swimmer on the best of days, and now he couldn’t even tell what way was up. And he hadn’t been able to get a good breath of air before falling in. His lungs demanded he breathe; he couldn’t feel his feet or his hands anymore. Everything was cold. Air…he needed air. Where was the surface?

There had to be a way out, right? He wasn’t going to die here. But it was so cold…and he hadn’t breathed in so long…was that the surface up there? It was so far away…

He didn’t want to die. He really, so didn’t want to die. What about Emma? And Hiccup and Merida and Rapunzel? They’d be crushed without him…they needed him to convince them to do more daring things. Who would convince them to sneak out afterhours? Who would lead all their pranks? And he didn’t even want to think about what would happen to Emma without him…

No, he didn’t want to die. But he couldn’t get out…it was all so cold…and dark…it was so, so dark…his chest hurt badly…he just wanted to breathe again…had his limbs always been so heavy?

He was going to die. Sinking in the lake, he was going to die.

He thought some tears slipped through his eyes, but he couldn’t be sure.

A warmth started to fester in his chest, just as he was losing consciousness. There was a flash of light, and he didn’t feel so cold anymore. The ache in his chest seemed just a little more bearable.

His eyes closed in unconsciousness.

X

Emma looked up from her snowbank and turned towards her brother, smiling in relief at her safety. But he wasn’t to be seen. There was a hole in the ice, and some water still sloshing around before it settled.

Her smile slipped off her face. “Jack? Jack!”

“Hey Emma!” Rapunzel greeted behind her. Emma turned towards her, fear etched into her face.

“Jack’s in the lake!” she yelled. The trio froze.

“What?” Rapunzel asked. Their eyes lifted to look out at the lake.

“The ice was weak over there and I fell on it and it started to break but he got me away but then he fell in!” Emma cried in one breath. “What do we do?”

A white-ish blue light flashed from the hole in the ice, making everyone pause.

“Jack!” Emma cried, rushing over as close as she dared. Rapunzel raced after her to stop her.

“What are you doing Haddock?” Merida asked. Hiccup just threw his cloak at her, and raced barefoot onto the ice, his shoes and socks where he had hastily left them. Without even thinking about how cold this water was going to be, he took a deep breath and jumped in, plunging himself into the same icy chill.

“Hiccup!” Rapunzel cried. Emma’s eyes were wide. Merida joined them, keeping Hiccup’s cloak ready for when they surfaced.

An agonizing minute passed, the three girls barely breathing, but then two heads broke the surface.

“Hiccup!”

“Jack!”

The girls helped Hiccup get Jack onto the ice before helping Hiccup out. Hiccup shivered, and his lips were turning blue. Jack though had stopped shivering and was far too pale, but most noticeably…

“Why is his hair white?” Merida asked. Rapunzel grabbed Hiccup’s cloak from Merida’s hands and wrapped it around Hiccup, shrugging out of her own to wrap it around Jack.

“We need to get him to the Hospital Wing. Both of you, actually,” Rapunzel said firmly.

Merida nodded and grabbed Jack’s arm, wrapping it around her shoulder before heaving him up. She faltered under his weight, but her feet were firm. “I’ll meet ya up there,” Merida said, running as well as she could. Jack’s feet dragged on the ground, him being taller than Merida, but that seemed like the least of their worries.

Rapunzel helped Hiccup stand. Emma was torn between who she wanted to be with more. Rapunzel made the decision for her. “Emma, run ahead of Merida and start screaming for help. We need them to meet us halfway,” Rapunzel said. Emma nodded and took off like a shot.

Hiccup still trembled badly, and if not for Rapunzel holding him up he would have fallen again. “Hang on, we’ll have you warmed up in no time,” she said, moving him across the ice. She paused briefly to pick up his shoes and socks, maneuvering his feet into at least his shoes. “That was really brave of you,” she said quietly.

“S-s-s-s-some o-o-o-one h-had to,” Hiccup stuttered.

Rapunzel looked him over worriedly. “We’d better hurry; you’re turning blue!” She dragged him to his feet and then dragged him up the snowy grounds to the castle. Merida and Jack were just reaching the doors, and Emma was already out of sight inside.

Hiccup stumbled along next to Rapunzel, the Hufflepuff setting a brisk pace to get him the help he needed. If not for her grip on him, he would have fallen face-first into the snow long before and would not have gotten up.

Professor McGonagall stepped outside, looking around for them frantically. When she saw them struggling up to the castle, she hurried down to them, taking off her own cloak to add it around Hiccup and then creating a stretcher so he wouldn’t have to walk. They then ran up all the way to the hospital wing, the professor’s stamina surprising Rapunzel.

Madam Pomfrey bustled about Jack, laying blankets on him and then rushing to her potions cabinet. Professor McGonagall transferred Hiccup to a bed and started administering to him herself, Jack obviously needing all of Pomfrey’s attention.

“Minerva,” Pomfrey said, handing a potion to the professor. McGonagall took it and glanced at it briefly before telling Hiccup to drink up.

Merida, Rapunzel, and Emma stood off to the side, staying out of the way. They were surprised they hadn’t been kicked out yet, but they weren’t going to push it. Emma was crying into Rapunzel’s arms.

Hiccup at least started to show the effects of McGonagall’s help. Some of the color came back into his face and he didn’t look so blue. His shivering lessoned, though he still looked like he felt really cold.

Jack, though, didn’t show any signs that Pomfrey’s work was having any effect. He was still pale, his hair still shockingly white, and he was still unconscious. “Minerva, I think we need to call St. Mungo’s. This is beyond my power,” Pomfrey admitted. McGonagall looked up at them.

“Do it,” she said. Pomfrey rushed off to the fireplace in her office to make the call.

Rapunzel and Merida glanced at each other worriedly. They had never seen something Pomfrey couldn’t handle, and it scared them. Hiccup looked over at them too before glancing at Jack.

Pomfrey came back into the room not even a minute later with two healers from St. Mungo’s. They checked Jack over quickly.

“Was his hair white before?” they asked. Pomfrey and McGonagall looked to the girls. They shook their head no.

The healer’s nodded. “It looks like he used magic unknowingly while underwater, and he’s facing the effects of that. We’ll take him to St. Mungo’s and fix him right up,” the one said. Without waiting for further permission, they levitated Jack onto a stretcher and carried him back to Pomfrey’s office where the fireplace still waited for them.

One of them glanced back at Hiccup. “Make sure he stays bundled up real tight for the rest of the night.”

He was gone a second later. Pomfrey took a deep breath and then turned to Hiccup, taking over for McGonagall. McGonagall took the chance to come over to the girls.

“Can you explain completely what happened, please?” she asked.

Through a lot of tears, Emma explained what happened. 

“There was this flash of light while Jack was under there, and that’s when Hiccup dove in after him. He pulled Jack out and we made our way here,” Merida finished. McGonagall nodded. She had pieced together most of what they had told her, but she still needed to hear from them personally.

“Thank you. Madam Pomfrey, I think all four of them are in need of some hot chocolate,” McGonagall said. Pomfrey glanced over at her and then at Hiccup.

“I quite agree. Give me a moment…”

Five minutes later and all four of them were huddled on Hiccup’s bed, sipping the hot beverages. They didn’t say much, too worried about Jack to think about much else. Their shared company was all they needed to get through right now. Emma clung to Rapunzel, tears still silently slipping down her cheeks.

Hiccup stayed the night in the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey unwilling to let him out of her sight. He still shivered every few minutes, and he didn’t argue. He knew the halls of the castle would be chilly from all the drafts, and he was finally warming up right where he was. Besides, he might hear news of Jack faster if he were here.

The girls were all back first thing the next morning, and they brought their homework so Hiccup knew they were prepared to spend all day there.

“Do people know something has happened?” Hiccup asked. Merida slipped him a pastry she snatched from breakfast.

“A lot of people saw you and Jack being carried into the castle, but I don’t think anyone knows Jack is in St. Mungo’s yet,” Rapunzel said. “Speaking of, any word yet?”

Hiccup sadly shook his head.

“And how are you feeling?” Merida asked.

“A lot warmer than yesterday. Pomfrey said she’ll let me go around noon. What do people think happened?”

“They think you two got in a duel and that’s why Jack’s hair is white,” Merida said. “How anticlimactic it will be when they find out he just fell through the ice.”

“Yeah but how heroic will it be when they find out Hiccup dove in after him?” Rapunzel retorted. Hiccup smiled softly.

Pomfrey walked into the room. “I thought I’d find you two here again. Could one of you go get Emma please? St. Mungo’s said Jack woke up and is asking for her, and he’s becoming quite the violent patient the longer he waits.”

“He’s awake?” they all asked at once, jumping forward. Pomfrey raised a hand.

“St. Mungo’s says he’s still pretty bad, but he won’t calm down until he knows that Emma is fine, so will one of you please go get her?” Pomfrey asked.

Rapunzel nodded. “I’ll go. I think she’s still sleeping in the dorm.” She left without another word.

“When can he have visitors?” Merida asked.

“That depends on how he cooperates after Emma calms him down. They can’t examine him fully while he’s like this,” Pomfrey said. She had a much more worried look on her face than any of them liked.

“What’s he doing?” Hiccup asked.

“They didn’t tell me, but they hinted his magic was acting up,” Pomfrey revealed. Hiccup and Merida glanced at each other.

“How can he be using so much magic like this?” Hiccup asked. “I mean, he’s a fifth year student, he’s had plenty of training.”

“I’m not sure…something may have snapped in him under that ice yesterday,” Pomfrey said. “Whatever it was, St. Mungo’s isn’t sure how to handle it. For now, complying with letting him see his sister seems to be the best way to calm him down.”

The two teens glanced at each other again. They both knew how fiercely protective Jack could be of anyone he was close to; they’d seen it often enough over the years. He would always get so reckless and do whatever it took to make sure they were safe. It had landed him in the hospital wing more often than not, but he never regretted it. It had also saved them all a few times, and scared them how serious and how dangerous he could become. When someone in second year was making fun of Rapunzel’s long hair, Jack had jumped to her defense and lashed out fists blazing until a teacher had to step in and stop him.

If he didn’t know that Emma, his little sister, was okay after yesterday…they could only wonder how much damage he was causing. He would stop at nothing short of murder to make sure Emma was safe.

Xx

Jack didn’t know what had happened. He remembered being underwater, and the cold pushing in on him from all around, but that was it. He woke up sore and tired, and what felt like too many blankets on him. He tried to push them away, rolling onto his side to go back to sleep, but someone caught his hand.

“Easy there, you need to keep those on or you might still freeze on us,” a kind voice said. Jack blearily opened an eye to see who had spoken, for it certainly wasn’t one of his roommates.

A nurse-she had to be a nurse with those white robes on- was smiling at him, and adding another blanket. It wasn’t Madam Pomfrey though, and that confused him.

“No, I don’t want another blanket. I’m not cold,” Jack said. Her smile turned to a frown of concern.

“You can’t feel the cold?” she asked. He frowned at her.

“Uh, should I?” he asked with a light laugh.

“You fell through the ice on the lake yesterday, and you’ve been unconscious ever since. Your body temperature is still far too low and we can’t bring it up,” she informed him.

“I fell through the ice?” Jack repeated, the memory starting to come back to him now. The ice cracking and Emma being right over it. “That’s right, where’s Emma? Where’s my sister?”

The nurse, startled, jumped back a bit. “Um, I don’t know who your sister is, but I’m sure she’s—”

“No! I need to know she’s okay!” Jack said, throwing the blankets off of himself and trying to climb to his feet. The nurse pushed him back to the bed though.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you leave, you’re not well enough yet,” she said firmly.

“I have to know if she’s okay!” Jack said, fighting to push her off. The temperature in the room was slowly starting to drop.

“I’m sure she’s fine!” the nurse said, struggling to get Jack back into bed. “Please, you need to stay bundled.”

“That’s not good enough!” Jack yelled. With his words came a blast of icy wind through the room.

“Please just calm down!” the nurse said.

“Where’s Emma?” Jack demanded. The longer they kept her from him, the more he started to think the worst. Ice started to creep along the floor.

“She’s probably back at Hogwarts still,” the nurse told him. “Now will you please—“

“I want to see her!” Jack demanded, fighting to get past her. Had he thrown her the right way off the ice yesterday? What if he only threw her into the deeper part of the lake? What if she was still trapped under the ice right now?

The temperature in the room dropped drastically, and the ice spread out all over the floor and started creeping up the walls.

“Jackson, please,” the nurse pleaded, white puffs of air coming out with her words. She was starting to shiver, and goosebumps rose on her arms. Another healer came into the room to see what was going on.

“Where is my sister?” Jack yelled, finally pushing past the nurse. She fell to the ground, slipping on the icy floor. Jack effortlessly slid right to the healer at the door, intending to slip past him to find his sister, but the healer grabbed Jack’s biceps.

“Son, you have to stay here, we have to check over you and see what damage happened to you yesterday,” the healer said. Jack fought in the man’s grip.

“Not until I see my sister!” Jack yelled, ice covering the door next to him. The healer glanced at it nervously. This was a lot of magic that this boy was letting loose unknowingly. And at his age, he shouldn’t be doing that. Something more than any of them realized must have happened in that water yesterday. “Let me go!”

The healer was blasted back by his raw power, hitting the wall in the hallway. Thankfully for the healer, the power had also blasted Jack back into the room. The healer got up quickly and checked the room. The nurse was getting up to restrain Jack while he was down, struggling on the icy floor.

But the room…it was almost entirely covered in ice. Whatever happened to this boy, they needed to find out what. This much raw power…it could end up killing him.

“Nurse, hold him here. Sedate him if you have to!” the healer yelled, closing the door again and running to the call stations. If getting his sister here would calm him down, then that’s what they’d do. It was the easiest way to get through to him right now.

Jack struggled to get up only to be pinned down by the nurse. “Please, Jackson, you have to calm down. This isn’t going to help your recovery!”

“Where is my sister? Why are you keeping her from me?” he demanded. Another layer of ice spread out rapidly around him, but Jack was unaware of the effect he was having on the room.

“I’m sure she’s on her way, but please you have to calm down!”

“Is she okay?” Jack demanded. The nurse faltered. Jack screamed, ice spreading out from his fingertips. It began to snow in the room, despite there not being any clouds.

He pushed her off and climbed to his feet, surging towards the door.

“Jackson!” the nurse yelled, unsteadily climbing to her feet on the ice. Another few healers came into the room to help her, but all that did was anger Jack more as he thought they were there to keep him from his sister.

Jack charged them with a battle cry, swirls of ice decorating the already icy floor under his feet. The healers pulled out their wands, recognizing that nothing but brute force would stop him. Jack raised his hand at every spell fired at him, and when they reached his hand they were all frozen in ice, falling to the floor as frozen lights.

Jack almost got past them, but one grabbed him around the waist and lifted him up into the air. Jack nearly kicked him in the face trying to get free. The healer carried him carefully back to the bed, the others standing at the ready. What they didn’t expect though was for Jack to try and push off the man with his hand. Where his hand touched the man, ice started to spread. The healer cried out in pain and dropped Jack.

Jack hit his head on the floor, stunning himself long enough for the other healers to get him tied down in the bed. The nurse was attending the injured healer’s frozen shoulder.

The snow continued to fall around the room, and it was slowly building into a blizzard.

“Jackson, please, yours sister is fine and she’s on the way. But you have to calm down!” one of the healers said.

“You’re lying!” Jack said. He strained against the restraints, pulling and twisting at them. Ice started to creep onto the restraints, and the healers knew it was only a matter of time before he was able to just break through the frozen bindings. They stood with their wands ready to stun him if he did, hoping his sister would get there soon to hopefully calm him down.

If this blizzard didn’t stop even then though, they might still have to stun him.

They heard the cracking of ice and the next thing they knew, Jack was intentionally shooting ice at them from his bare hands. They dodged, slipping and falling on the ice, and Jack made a break for it. They shot stunning spells from the floor, but they all missed and Jack opened the door, running into the hallway.

He was loose.

Jack ran through the halls, leaving icy footprints behind him. He had to find Emma…he had to make sure she was okay. He could hear the healers coming behind him, but he didn’t have time for them. He had to make sure Emma was okay. That was his first priority.

He turned the corner and smiled in relief. Rapunzel and Emma were both walking towards him. “Emma!” he called out. She looked him up and down as he ran at her and wrapped her in a hug and swung her around. “I’m so glad you’re okay!” he said.

“Jack?” she questioned. He pulled away a little to look at her. There was no longer any ice forming around him.

“Did you escape your healers?” Rapunzel questioned. Jack looked up at her questioningly and then thought about the last several minutes. Most of it was a blur…but he remembered a lot of ice and pleading for him to calm down.

“Uh…maybe?” he asked, legitimately not sure if he had or not. Both Rapunzel and Emma sighed at him.

“Are you okay, Jack?” Emma asked. He looked down at her big brown eyes, seeing tears forming in them.

“’Course I am,” Jack assured her.

“On the contrary, Mr. Overland, that has yet to be determined,” the nurse said, coming around the corner and resting her hands on her knees as she caught her breath.

“But I feel fine!” Jack insisted. The nurse glared up at him.

“Your magic is wildly out of control, and we need to determine why and how best to fix it,” the nurse told him.

“It is not,” Jack declared. The nurse raised a brow.

“That’s actually why we came, Jack,” Rapunzel informed him. “They said you were getting violent with your magic and the only way to calm you down was to bring Emma.”

Emma looked down, as if ashamed at the reason for her coming. Jack merely stared at them, not believing them.

“If you’ll follow me, Jackson, I can prove it to you,” the nurse said.

“It’s just Jack,” Jack said, standing up to his full height again. “And sure, lead the way.”

The nurse let out a breath of relief. She liked this calmer version of the boy much better.

The trio followed the nurse back to Jack’s room, noticing the random ice patches that led all the way there.

In the doorway to Jack’s room, they all froze. The entire room was covered in ice and snow.

“I did this?” Jack questioned quietly. He stepped in, slipping on the floor a bit. Emma and Rapunzel stayed in the hallway. Emma wasn’t too keen on stepping on ice again after what happened yesterday.

“All without a wand,” the nurse confirmed. Jack looked around in awe.

“How did I…I barely even remember doing this,” Jack admitted, looking to the nurse for answers.

“Well, if you’ll allow us to properly examine you now, we might be able to figure that out,” the nurse said. Jack nodded.

“Will that explain what happened to his hair and his eyes?” Emma asked.

“What happened to my hair and eyes?” Jack asked self-consciously, reaching up to tug on his hair. He pulled some of his hair down in front of his eyes, his now blue eyes widening as he realized it was white. “Is my hair white?!”

The nurse sighed. “Jack, please, the examination?” she reminded.

“Why is my hair white?” he demanded, dropping the strands and turning to her with horror on his face. “It’ll go back, right?”

“Jackson Overland if you don’t let me examine you I’m going to use the Imperious charm on you,” the nurse threatened, pulling out her wand. Jack stepped back, raising his hands in surrender.

“Okay, I give. Let’s find out why in Merlin’s beard my hair is white,” he agreed. They had to move to another room, and Emma and Rapunzel had to wait outside while healers went in and out. None of them told them anything.

Hiccup and Merida joined them later in the day, worried about their friend and the lack of news. Emma was curled up tightly against Rapunzel. Rapunzel had undone the complicated braid her hair was usually in and wrapped herself and Emma in it.

“What’s going on?” Hiccup asked. He was still heavily bundled, but none of them said anything about it.

“Well Jack apparently froze his room earlier trying to get out to find Emma,” Rapunzel said.

“There was ice and snow everywhere,” Emma described. Rapunzel nodded in confirmation.

“Merlin’s beard…and he did all that without a wand?” Merida asked. They both nodded. Hiccup and Merida glanced at each other.

“And now?” Hiccup asked.

“They took him in there to examine him, but that was hours ago and no one will tell us anything now,” Rapunzel said.

Merida plopped down next to Rapunzel, and Hiccup sat down next to Merida.

Finally, after another hour, Jack came out escorted by two healers. He smiled when he saw them all.

“Hey guys! Were you waiting out here the whole time?” he asked.

“Just about,” Rapunzel said tiredly. Emma climbed out of Rapunzel’s hair and hugged Jack’s legs.

“You’re okay, right?” she asked. Jack kneeled down next to her and wrapped his arms around her.

“Yeah, like I said I’m fine.”

“That’s not entirely true,” one of the healers said. Jack glared up at him.

“What’s wrong?” Merida asked.

“What’s your relation to the boy?” the healer asked. Merida stood back, affronted.

“My relation?” she repeated angrily. “I just happen to be one of his bloody best friends! And if you don’t tell us what’s wrong with him you’re going to be a bloody mess!”

“She’s not kidding,” Hiccup warned them. “She really will start fighting you.”

“Relax, guys. It’s not that bad,” Jack said. “I just have a lower body temperature than everyone else now and it looks like most of my magic will be wintery now.”

“We’re keeping him here for a few more days for observation, to see if these changes are permanent or not. But if they are permanent, then you’ll have to be careful he doesn’t get overheated. It will be a lot easier for even a fireplace to give him heatstroke,” the healer said.

“Yeah, but I can essentially go out in the snow barefoot now!” Jack said excitedly.

“Well that’s not advisable either,” the healer said exasperated.

Jack pouted. “You’re just trying to ruin all my fun, aren’t you?” he asked.

The healer smiled sarcastically at him. “Yep, that’s it. I want you to live a long and boring life and hopefully not end up back here again.”

“Aw, you do care about me,” Jack joked.

The healer sighed and rolled his eyes. “C’mon, you need to get some rest. And you four should head back to Hogwarts. Tell Pomfrey we need to talk. Don’t even start, you can come back and visit tomorrow.” He raised a hand as their mouths opened. “Say your goodbyes.”

Emma hugged Jack tighter. Jack chuckled. “Relax squirt, I’m fine. And I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

She looked up at him. “Promise?”

“Promise.”

She smiled and Rapunzel took her hand, giving Jack a quick hug before leading Emma away. Hiccup and Merida both gave Jack hugs too before following the blonde, picking up her hair so it wouldn’t get trampled. Jack was then led to a new room and told to get some rest, which he gladly did, falling on top of the bed and curling up into the pillow.

Xx

Jack sat on his bed, making snowflakes fly around the room. He didn’t really understand why his magic had all turned into winter stuff, or why he didn’t always need a wand to use it. The healers had said that he must have panicked while underwater and since he did have his wand on him, just not in his grasp, his magic acted as strong as it would have if he’d been holding it to protect him.

None of that made sense to him, since as far as he could gather it hadn’t actually gotten him out of the water. He was pretty sure he remembered someone else dragging him out. So how had his magic protected him?

Well whatever happened, he wasn’t sure it was as bad as everyone made it seem. He had these cool new ice powers, he couldn’t get cold as easily and he would never need another winter cloak…it all seemed pretty nice. The only downside was his poor hair. He definitely was not looking forward to the other kids at Hogwarts seeing it.

The door opened and four people walked in. Emma came first, running right up to his bedside. Hiccup followed after her, still more bundled than Jack thought he probably needed to be. Or was Hiccup just afraid of Jack’s powers? Rapunzel walked in after Hiccup, her hair bound in its usual complex braid. None of them fully understood how she managed to make about seventy feet of hair only reach her feet, even in a braid, but none of them questioned it anymore either. Merida was last, and she closed the door behind her.

Jack smiled at them all and sat up a little straighter. “Finally! I was about to die of boredom here!”

“Well fear not, we’ve brought your homework,” Rapunzel said, dropping a bag at the foot of Jack’s bed. His smile turned to a frown.

“Punz!” Jack whined. 

“Hey, you still have to have your work done when you come back. And if you’re bored then you’ll have plenty of time to get it done,” Rapunzel said. Merida and Hiccup rolled their eyes while Jack pouted.

“But I’m injured! I can’t do homework!” Jack tried.

“I thought you said you were fine?” Emma asked, concern quickly growing in her eyes. Jack’s eyes switched to her.

“No, no, I am…I ah…I just don’t want to do homework. That’s all,” Jack said. “But I am perfectly a-okay.”

Emma smile and looked up at Rapunzel. “You were right!”

Jack looked up at Rapunzel, horrified. “You used my own sister against me!”

Merida and Hiccup laughed. “And you fell right into it,” Merida chortled. Jack crossed his arms and grumbled to himself.

“Why are you so bundled anyway Hiccup?” Jack asked, trying to change the subject. “You look like you’re going to Antarctica.”

Hiccup jumped and pulled the scarf a little tighter around himself. “Um, well…”

“Hiccup’s the one that jumped in after you and dragged you out. He almost gave himself hypothermia, and he still feels really cold. Madam Pomfrey also made him swear not to wear any less than three layers until tomorrow,” Merida explained for him.

Jack’s jaw dropped. “You jumped in after me?” he asked quietly. Hiccup looked away and nodded. “Wow. I guess I owe you a huge thanks, huh?” Jack had a soft smile on his lips, but in his strikingly blue eyes they could tell that something was bothering him.

“Well I did save your life,” Hiccup stated. Jack laughed.

“Couldn’t save my hair though, could you?” Jack asked.

“Hey, I needed to even the field for the rest of us somehow,” Hiccup played along.

“Did you really have to make me look like an old man to do it?” Jack asked. He tugged at the ends of his hair unhappily.

The girls giggled while Hiccup just smiled. “It doesn’t look that bad Jack,” Rapunzel admitted. Jack beamed.

“Though it does make you look older,” Merida said. Jack paused.

“How much older?” he questioned.

“Oh you know…ten, fifteen years,” Merida said offhand.

“It does not!” Jack said, slightly panicking. The temperature in the room dropped. “Someone get me a mirror already!”

“Would you calm down?” Rapunzel chastised. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small hand mirror. “I thought you might want to see what you look like now so I grabbed this before I left.”

He snatched it out of her hand and eagerly examined himself. “Huh. It’s actually…not bad,” he finally admitted. “I actually kind of like it.”

“Well that’s good, ‘cause it sounds like you’re stuck with it,” Hiccup said. Jack scowled at him.

“Your eyes are really blue now,” Emma commented. Jack looked back at the mirror.

“Yeah, they are, aren’t they?” he agreed.

Merida crossed her arms and leaned back. “I can’t wait to see how everyone at school reacts when you come back,” she stated.

Xx

Jack wasn’t released from St. Mungo’s for a few more days, and it was decided that the changes in him were mostly permanent. The extreme weather changes that occurred with his moods seemed to be dying down now, the new power not as eager to escape him. His normal magic all had white tints to it now, and he found there were bits of snow in everything he did. He tried to make something levitate, and it was a whirl of snowflakes that lifted it into the air. When he spilled something on his shirt and tried to clean it with a spell, little snowflakes swirled around the stain while it cleaned. That one he thought was a little embarrassing. If snowflakes were going to surround everything he did, he wasn’t going to be too keen on performing spells in class.

He was also finding that he felt heat a lot faster. Just by wearing his uniform he felt like he was sweating and he hadn’t even put the cloak on yet. Anything more than a sheet at night was unbearable, and he did start sweating every time he walked past a fireplace.

That had made getting back to school interesting, as they weren’t entirely sure what affects the floo network would have. Since he had arrived at St. Mungo’s that way and hadn’t seemed to suffer, they assumed he would be fine. The only reason they let him risk it was because they had to know for certain if it was safe for him, and they had healers waiting for him at the hospital wing just in case.

Thankfully though, he managed to get through it just fine, landing in Madam Pomfrey’s office and covered in soot. She helped him up and brushed the ash off of him, the other healers all coming over and asking him questions.

“I’m fine, really! Can I go now?” Jack asked impatiently. Madam Pomfrey checked him over once more, made him promise to come back before bed that night, and then she allowed him to go to lunch where his classmates were waiting.

He cheered and ran out of the room, forgetting all about his new style and how others might react to that. Most people that he passed in the halls didn’t recognize him right away, but as he passed and they looked after, they started thinking about it and wondering, whispering together as he raced out of sight.

When he got to the Great Hall though, most people stopped eating and stared at him as he joined his housemates. They all glanced at Rapunzel, Hiccup, and Merida to see how they reacted, making sure it really was Jack. When the trio smiled widely and waved at Jack, they knew it was really him. Whispers exploded all around as they wondered why his hair was white and his eyes blue.

The Gryffindor table cheered when he came in, welcoming him back immediately and sitting him in the middle of the table so he could talk about what happened.

“There’s not much to tell,” he admitted. “Oh, but watch this.” He smirked devilishly and shot a stream of ice across the table, freezing a few plates and forks to the wood. People gasped and the closest person tried to pry it off.

“How did you do that?” they asked.

“It’s a secret,” Jack smirked.

All the rest of that day, Jack made patches of ice wherever he went. The teachers, of course, had all been told about his new powers and so knew it was him, but they could never catch him in the act. Unfortunate victims slipped on the ice and dropped their books everywhere. Jack’s mischievous laugh echoed through the halls once more, a sound that had been missed for the last several days.

The teachers, however, were left to wonder just how long that laugh would continue echoing as the boy continued to experiment with his powers.


End file.
